Europe – $39.64 per day x 278 days = $11,019
Morocco – $40.00 per day x 64 days = $2,560
Syria – $23.89 per day x 57 days = $1,362
Iran – $17.16 per day x 88 days = $1,510
Turkey – $53.97 per day x 36 days = $1,942
Turkmenistan – $15.21 per day x 7 days = $106
Uzbekistan – $19.09 per day x 18 days = $344
Kazakhstan – $18.07 per day x 29 days = $524
Kyrgyzstan – $26.58 per day x 27 days = $718
Thailand – $32.33 per day x 70 = $2,263
Cambodia – $34.11 per day x 29 days = $989
Laos – $22.00 per day x 27 days = $594
Malaysia – $28.59 per day x 30 days = $858
Singapore – $20.70 per day x 3 days = $63
Australia – $33.01 per day x 60 days = $1,980
New Zealand – $34.67 per day x 87 days = $3,016
America – $39.00 per day x 38 days = $1,482
Canada – $30.06 per day x 138 days = $4,148

*You may wonder at some of these costs. Why was Turkey so much? We drank a lot of beer there! A desert tour drove up the average daily price in Morocco. Singapore was so little because we stayed with friends. For more information, read the small print.

Daily Expenses Total: $35,478

Save some money for replacement gear, or be prepared to hack repairs with tools and duct tape!

Bike Maintenance: If you go a long tour, of course you’ll have to budget for replacement parts. The first year, we didn’t need to do anything to our bikes but in the second and third years we had a variety of expenses related to our bikes. We each went through 3 sets of tires, we had to replace our rims twice, we had our bikes cleaned and tuned up in Bangkok and then there were issues like a broken rack and frame for Andrew, which we had welded in Cambodia and then again in Australia.

Bike Maintenance Total: $1,399

Gear: It’s not just the bike that needs a bit of tender loving care. We also went through a bit of gear. We replaced our sleeping bags and tent once. We had to buy new clothes occasionally and sometimes we added little extras to our camping equipment.

New and Replacement Gear Total: $2,600

Visas can be expensive, if you’re travelling to many foreign countries!

Visas: Visas didn’t feature in our expenses for the first year or towards the end of our trip. For the second year in the Middle East and Central Asia however, these costs started to mount. In Central Asia, you can count on spending at least $100 per person, per country. Sometimes, you have to pay not only for a visa but also for a letter from your home embassy, testifying that your passport is valid.

Visa Total: $1,499

Insurance: Some cyclists travel without insurance. We prefer to be covered in case of catastrophic events so we purchased coverage for bicycle touring from the BMC. We never used it, but it was good for peace of mind.

Insurance Total: $1,847

Transport: We didn’t always ride our bikes. In addition to a few trains, ferries, buses and 5 days on a cargo ship, we also took flights.

London – Montreal – London

Almaty – Bangkok

Singapore – Perth

Auckland – San Francisco

Transport Total: $7,038

Healthcare: We never used our insurance because, thankfully, we never had a big problem. Little things weren’t worth claiming because they never went above our deductible so when we went to a doctor or saw a dentist, we paid out of our own pocket.

Healthcare Total: $571

The Grand Total: Add all of this up and you come to a total of $50,432. Divide that by 1,102 days on the road and then again by 2 people and you come up with $22.88 per person, per day.

Let’s call it $23. Better yet, let’s call it an amazing price for the adventure of a lifetime.

Remember to save some money for meals out. You won’t want to cook on your campstove all the time.

The Small Print: Costs change, exchange rates vary and travel styles are unique. These figures reflect 2006-2009 prices, a strong British pound until near the end of our trip (our savings are in a UK bank account) and a lifestyle that was above rock bottom but not quite flashpacker. All prices reflect the cost for 2 people travelling together.

To give you a better sense of our travelling style, we did a lot of wild camping, but in towns we often took the second or third cheapest hotel, not the one at the bottom of the heap. We also spent time with friends and family along the way, helping to lower our accommodation costs.

We cooked almost all our own meals, aside from street food in budget-friendly countries like Thailand, but equally we enjoyed a few beers. In New Zealand, we didn’t go bungee jumping but we did frequent many bakeries and ice cream shops. You get the idea…

Also, it’s important to note that we did not keep careful track of our set-up costs (buying the bikes, initial gear). If you want high-tech equipment, you might easily spend $1,500-2,000 on a custom bike and another $1,000 on gear. Spending $3,000-5,000 on new gear would add between $3-5 to your daily cost over 3 years. This is a high estimate and also remember that you will likely come home with much of this gear and still be able to use it. Our bikes are still good to go for the next tour, as is our stove, our cooking equipment and our rain gear, among other things.

Just to add my 2 cents to cost of cyclo-touring: When I cycled around the Himalayas in 2006 for six months, I was able to easily stick to about US$12-15/day. That was a quite generous number given that in countries I traveled everything was quite cheap: India, Pakistan, China/Tibet and Nepal…

This excluded the flight to and from India (JFK – New Delhi) which was about US$1,400 at the time. All added together, (with bike upgrades and new touring equipment, too), I had an amazing, and I must add, truly life changing, six months for less than $5,500!!!

Thanks for being one of the first to come forward with straight talk about what bike touring really costs.

Our daily average hovers around $20. Surprisingly, traveling in the US and Europe we don´t spend much more than in developing countries in Africa and Central America. I guess it´s becuase we cook more and hook up with hosts from Warm Showers and COuchsurfing.

Hi there. Its interesting to read your breakdown of costs (just as I am doing my own). But I think your reasoning gets a little flawed once you start to split the costs from one person to two.

Is it really half the price for a hotel room for one person? Not in my experience. Do you really spend half as much on food if you are one? I don’t think so. Is a taxi going to cost less because you are not two people?

That said, its interesting to see how you managed and you’ve done a nice job with your website.

Thank you for making this information public and so readily accessible. I think the criticism is unwarranted- any one going on a similar trip could extrapolate from your figures to suit their own circumstances. Thanks again, Barney

$11,000 for 278 days in europe? and you’re pretending this is cheap because you were on a bicycle? that’s pretty ridiculous, you could have rented an apartment in europe and lived a normal life that for price.

I’m afraid we wouldn’t agree with you. Our total spend works out to just under $40 U.S. a day (about 29 euros), for two people. Let’s compare like-with-like. Renting an apartment and staying in one place is not comparable to travelling all around Europe (primarily expensive Western Europe) and sightseeing along the way.

Compared to almost any other trip around Europe, except perhaps hitchhiking, this is a cheap price. Ask the average backpacker what they spend per day, once they rent a hostel bed, pay for train / bus tickets, etc… Our 2003 Lonely Planet (already almost 10 years old) estimates that just a hostel bed will cost 15-30 euros per day and local transport 3-6 euros – that’s already the same or more than our budget and you haven’t even seen, done or eaten anything!

Also, if you read our ‘small print’, you’d know that we were deliberately NOT trying to go for a rock-bottom budget because it was the start of our journey and we were still learning the ropes of bicycle touring. We’re not saying you couldn’t do it for cheaper. We’re saying that this represents good value for a trip that included some medium-range frills like occasional restaurant meals, hotels, etc…

Back to the apartment point – perhaps in a cheaper country like Spain or some rural areas you could rent an apartment and live on less than $1,000 a month (our yearly spend works out to about $920 a month). Here in the Netherlands, it would be a challenge. We rented a room during our first few months here, and that alone was 400 euros (over $500 U.S.) a month.

Flight: Cape Town and up Africa. Family in South Africa & Namibia plus friends in Tanzania. 9500km +/- est. 9 months

Through Europe back to Blighty 2900km +/- max 3 months

Now all this comes to with airfares appr. £8600 ($13200 US)

Problem is I will not have this amount by May…Do’h! So trip will probably either be shorted or rushed, don’t want either. Why leave May? This route works with the seasons.

Other option, is work till Oct, more money. Fly directly out to NZ Oct 2012, spring. 6 months full south island cycle. Then March 2013 Aus across Perth, up Africa and Europe. Hit Europe late spring 2014 and some money still in the bank, we hope!

2nd option cost will be £7200 ($11000 US) certainly more manageable by Oct, with reserve!

Obviously miss the Americas, another journey I think. Perhaps then I can look at North South or South North!

I promised I would be in NZ for spring so that is a pre-requisite.

Any thoughts/suggestions on estimates please. Am I in the right ball park?

I am biting to leave for May but reason is saying otherwise :-/

Nigel

Ps. Just a thought as Friedel had mentioned at the start, try to cut out as many airfares. So perhaps out of Aus (Darwin)to the Far East Tibet/Nepal etc..

I don’t know your route, but as a gauge when I cycled London to Istanbul it was nearer 4,000km. It also cost me around £2,000 (for 60 days). That was a mixture of wild camping, campsites and hostels (plus the odd hotel when I got stuck).

It wasn’t extravagant nor tight. Down the middle I felt.

The flights for me were a bit of a stinger. £2,500 in total. I don’t know what you have booked regarding them, but be prepared. It’s not always worth going with a budget airline, so you have to pay a little bit more for a decent carrier. The flight home (from Perth) is costing me £800 for a single! There’s just nothing cheaper around (according to SkyScanner).

Just be prepared for Oz. It’s very expensive. More so than Europe. A beer alone is £6-7. Look into cooking your own food. The exchange rate (to the pound) is really bad now, under 1.5.

So my only concern with your budget would be, is it enough? Given the countries you are cycling. Asia, no problem. US, Oz and Europe, not so sure.

Also I didn’t bother crossing Oz. Mainly because I’m here in January and it’s baking. From what I’ve been told though it’s not the easiest, some long stretches.

After plenty more thought and head scratching I am changing ideas and plans. If I departed in May as thought with the route I have mentioned, it’s just too tight and I would worrying to much over can I afford this, can I go there? Then would be rushing or cutting things short, not what we want?

As Friedel has mentioned on the site somewhere that what they would have changed would have been, cut back on airfares somehow.

With this advice in hand and yes like costs Perth to Jo’burg been £800 ($1200) I am looking at a direct flight out to New Zealand in Oct 2012 £500 ($750). This then gives me another 7 months of ‘fund raising’ (work!). Makes a big difference to my funds.

With this I can spend 6 months in New Zealand and then not worry about funds as I head back to Blighty through Australia, the Far East and over the top of troubled regions! and Europe.

I know you guys said you weren’t traveling as cheap as possible, so if anyone is interested in trying to save a little more money, I’m currently putting a website together that includes my calculations for super budget touring costs. I found I can spend around $21.87 per day traveling through the US. It’s not that much lower then your average of $23 a day, but that’s probably because the US is a relatively expensive place in general to ride. If anyone wants to see my breakdown, you can view it here http://www.bikeacrossamericatips.com/?p=112

What insurance would you get? from which company?
Have you known of any telephone international plans that is reasonable? Just for emergencya and occasional calls. Do you find that exchanging a local chip is a better option?

I wild-camped about two thirds of the nights and spent about a third in hostels/hotels – usually in the bigger cities and once for a whole week to recover. Ate supermarket food (about half of my meals) and take away/bakery food/restaurant the other half.

I probably could have done it for a bit less but sometimes I just needed a real bed, a real shower, some conversation and a hot meal (didn’t take cooking equipment). So IMHO opinion your numbers check out, depending on your comofort level and price level in the country I would calculate between 15-35 Euro a day. In the cheaper countries the daily cost only fell slightly because I tended to compensate lower cost by simply consuming more (why eat bread and cheese if I can have a meal in a restaurant for the same price? Why not flip through 500+ channels if I can have a room to myself for 10 Euro? (And stay dry!)

Hi to my Facebook friends! I’m planning to ride my bicycle from Fremantle Western Australia to Brisbane Queensland for charity – the distance is about 4400 kilometres through some of the most isolated parts of Australia – from the Indian to the Pacific Ocean. I plan to start in between September and October 2015, depending on the weather. I’m asking for any charity organisations to support on this epic ride, and I’m going to do a webpage and use Facebook to keep everyone updated. I’m letting you know this because I would love your advice in fundraising for charity, and would like to know that when I do this vast journey that I would be strengthened with some of your heartfelt suggestions!
Please like and comment on this post, because this is not only a milestone for me, but I would also love to support today’s troubled children or help fix the Earth they will inherit. Of course, any other suggestions for charities are welcome because they will help make this massive ride a reality, something I have wanted to do for years!
You can all be the start of this epic journey by liking and commenting on this post – please, I would appreciate all your help.
Paul Anthony Ebejer cheers and ride safe on the roads.

hi guys , you are truly very inspiring. I first read your posts a few years ago and have been dreaming of embarking on an expedition from india. My dream is to begin my journey from the Karakoram and move towards Europe along the old silk route. The other is to go from the north of America to the south. How long will both of these take ? I also need tips on how I could earn a living along the way ?

Hi guys,
We’re (my husband and I ) planning a similar trip through Europe in 2017. How long ago are the prices you used accurate for? Are there any more recent sites you can recommend that can give us an idea on how much to budget for? We’re looking at travelling for 3 to 4 months from the Netherlands down into Southern France, across into Italy, a couple of week in Croatia and then about a month in Greece. If we travel in a similar style to you, do you think that 50 euro per day for the both of us is reasonable or should we be looking at more?
Thanks,
Pascale

Hi, we’ve toured Europe over the last two summers, following Eurovelo 6 from Nantes in France to Belgrade, and last year from Angers down the Eurovelo 1, across to the Mediterranean and up the Rhone to Geneva. Both journeys were over 6 weeks and using campsites most nights, a budget of 50 Euros should be fine. Next trip, we’re taking a lightweight stove for tea and coffee which is a sound and cheaper alternative to a daily visit to the local cafes, which adds to the “incidentals”.

You know when I first stated to look into how I would go about planning a little of my World tour, I stumbled upon this site and found it an absolute joy to read. It was insanely informative and gave me peace of mind too as to things like budgets and stuff.

After three years or so I still come back for more. Always interesting and always honest advice about the things that matter most. Love it

About Us

We’re Friedel & Andrew: two Canadians who love travelling by bicycle. We’ve travelled through over 30 countries and cycled over 60,000km. Most of that distance was covered on a bike tour around the world from 2006-2009. Read More »

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